House-door letter-box



2 Sheets Sheet 1. n

- (No Model.)

. W. SCOTT.

EoUsE DooE LETTER B0X.

Patented Mar. 31, 1891..

,wwllllll/ 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

W. SCOTT. EOUSE DOOR LETTER BOX.

Padzented Mar. 31, 1891.

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UNITED STATES.

PATENT OFFICE.

VILLIAM SCOTT, OF LEAVENVORTH, KANSAS.

HoUsE-DooR LETTER-Box.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 449,593, dated March 31,1891.

Application filed August 23, 1890. Serial No. 362,861. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM SCOTT, of Leavenworth, Leavenworth county, Kansas, have invented certain new and useful 11nprovements in Combined Movable Naine- Plates and Mail-Receptacles, of which the following is a full, clear, andexact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof.

My invention relates to improvements in combined name-plates and mail-receptacles; and it consists in the peculiar combination and arrangement of devices, as will be hereinafter set forth, and pointed out in the claims.

My object is to provide a convenient letterbox or Inail-receptacle into which the carriers may deposit the mail without the necessity of knocking or calling the members of the household to the door, and which, when so deposited, is impossible to be withdrawn from the outside. The name of the resident is also inscribed on the front plate of the device, thus obviating the necessity of a separate name-plate.

Referring to the drawings which illustrate this invention, Figure 1 isa perspective view of the deviceI when closed, looking from the outside of the door. Fig. 2 is an enlarged perspective View of the same thrown open. Fig. 3 is a vertical central sectional View of Fig. l, showing in dotted lines the position of the name plate or casing when open, and showing, also, in dotted lines the position which the 'name-plate may assume when newspapers or other bulky articles are inserted through the door. Fig. 4 is a vertical central sectional view of the device, showing the mail bag or receptacle secured thereon. Fig. 5 is a front view of a portion of the said bag or receptacle. Fig. 6 shows another form ofA mail-bag, and Fig. 7 shows different form of connecting-links between the name-plate and the door-plate of the device.

Similar letters refer to similar parts in all the figures, in which- A represents a door provided with an opening` or slot a, the upper and lower surfaces of which are inclined downwardly and rearwardly.

B represents the door-plate, provided with a slot b in alignment with the slot in the door.

. The plate B is provided with the outstanding horizontal flange or shoulder C, connecting at either end with the upper end of the vertical iianges c, the lower ends of which are in alignmentwith the lower surfaces of the slot of the door A. The door-plate is also provided with the ears D directly beneath the flange C and opposite the inner side of the Vertical iianges o.

z Journaled between the flanges c and ears D on the pins E are the upper ends of the swinging links F, the lower ends of which are journaled on the pins G, which connect the ears H with the side walls I, extending perpendicularly from the name-plate J.

The walls K K, extending perpendicularly from the name-plate from the top and bottom thereof, connect the walls I I, forming a flange or shoulder around the naine-plate, which, when closed, incloses the horizontal flange O and side iianges o entirely.

Secured over the rear side of the opening ct in the door is a mouth-piece L, by means of bolts or screws M passing through the flanges N thereof. This mouth-piece is provided with a slot Z, aligned with the slot a, in the door and door-plate mentioned, and is provided with the outwardly-Haring mouth O, over which the spring P is placed.

' The spring P is provided at its meeting ends with the upstanding ears p and p', the ear p being provided with an outstanding bail or loop Q, which passes through a slot in the ear p and is engaged by a padlock S.

Secured permanently to the rear side of the springPis the upper end of the bag or Inailreceptacle T, made of steel wire or other suitable lnaterial and lined on its inner side with a suitable material U to within a short distance of the lower end of the bag, the object of which will be hereinafter specified.

Fig. 6 represents a side view of a bag made of any suitable material, either plain or ornamental, of suitable size and shape and provided with the opening o in the side thereof, near the top, as shown in the bag illustrated in Fig. 4. The object of making the opening in the side is that the bag will hang more freely and will not have the objectionable series of folds on the side near the door, which would obstruct the entrance of mail-matter.

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An elastic band V surrounds the opening o to hold the bag to the mouth-piece on the door.

ln Fig. 7 I show a modification in which the cross-bars d connect the ears D and vertical side flanges c c, and in place of the link F, l show a spring-link F, which, when the device is open, is in the position shown, and which,when released by means Aof the springlinks being fulcrumed at the cross-bars d, is instantly closed, as will be readily understood.

The operation of my invention is as follows: The name-plate being in the position shown in Fig. 1 is thrown outward by the postman, which plate being pivoted below its center, as shown,causes the lower edge of said plate having the flange or wall K thereon to move upward, gliding up the beveled outer face a; ot' the lug on the outer surface of the doorplate until the edge of said flange or wall abuts against the lower edges of the side walls c c of the door-plate, and the lower side of the flange K rests upon the upper beveled surface 5c of the lug X, and thus holding by the impingement the naine-plate open. lVhen the mail is deposited, a slight outward movement by the postman causes the flange K to clear the lug X, allowing` the name-plate to resume its normal closed position.

The object of the horizontal flange `C and vertical side flanges c c of the door-plate is to prevent when raining the water which may pass between the door-plate and name-plate from entering through the slot in the door, as will be readily understood.

By reason of the peculiar manner in which the name-plate is pivoted it will be seen that it can, il' desired, be made to rest upon the upper flange C when in an open position, the links F then resting in the recesses C2.

The object of the lining in the woven-wire bag is to allow the mail-matter which might otherwise catch in the meshes of the bag to drop to the bottom of the bag, whence it may be seen without the necessity of removing the bag from the mouth-piece L.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. The combination, with the flanged and slotted door or base plate and a beveled lug thereon, ot a nameplate and links connecting the two plates, substantially as described.

2. The combination, with the slotted door or base plate, outwardly-turned flanges surrounding the upper side and the ends of the slot, and a beveled lug located on the plate below the slot, of a name-plate and links c onnecting said plates, said nameplate being provided with flanges adapted to overlap the flanges on the door-plate, substantially as described.

3. In a combined name-plate and mail-receptacle, plate B, having slot b therein, the horizontal and vertical flanges C and c c outstanding therefrom and surroundin g at a suitable distance the slot b, and the outstandmg ears D, the plate J, the links connect-ing said ears and plate, and inclined lug X of the door-plate, substantially as described.

Il. ln a combined door-plate and mail-receptacle, the connecting-links F F, j ournaled at either end on the pins E and G between the ears'D and the side walls c oi' the doorplate and ears II and side or end walls I of the name-plate J, substantially as described.

5. The combination of a door provided with a slot c, the upper and lower walls of which are inclined as described, the mouth-piece L, provided with the aligned slot Z, the flanges N, by which it is secured to the door, and the flaring mouth-piece L, round which is secured the spring P, secured at the upper end of the bag or mail -receptacle T, substantially as described.

6. In a mail-bag constructed of woven wire or other suitable material, having secured at its upper end the spring P to conform in shape to the flaring mouth of mouth-piece L, said spring having outstanding ears p and p', provided with a staple Q and slot, respectively, and adapted when closed to be engaged by the padlock S, said bag being also provided with a lining of suitable material U to within a short distance of its lower end, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

7. The combination of a door-plate provided with the vertical walls c, the lower end thereof forming an abutment or stop, and a lug X, having an inclined upper surface, with a naine-plate, the flange or wall K thereof resting nuclei' and upon the walls c and lug X, respectively, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

VILLIAM SCOTT.

NVitnesses:

G. Y. THORPE, II. E. PRICE.

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